American Culture

Chapter 6: The World of

American Business
The Characteristics of American
Business (1)

Businesses are directly/indirectly owned by

private individuals/groups for profit
There are also:
Public, government owned institutions
Nonprofit organizations (churches, charities etc)
Dont confuse these two groups
How Business Competition Reinforces
Other Values (2)

Business institutions are at the heart of

American life
Business is based on the ideal of competition
which is the major source of progress and
prosperity
Thus competitive business institutions are
respected
How Business Competition Reinforces
Other Values (3-5)

Competition protects freedom by preventing

monopoly
Quality of goods and services is guaranteed
by competition
Competition in business also strengthens
equality of opportunity
Business competition is seen as an
alternative to inherited privilege
How Business Competition Reinforces
Other Values (6-7)
Business competition encourages hard work
The harder working person is likely to win
However, many Americans distrust big
business putting profits before people
Need for government regulation
The Dream of Getting Rich (8)
Most wealthy Americans have achieved their wealth
through successful business
Often they started with very little
Americans preferred business to farming because it
offered more opportunities to get rich
Business is seen as benefiting the whole nation
through competition everyone can become rich
The Entrepreneur as Business Hero (11-
16)

Successful business people often become

heroes to the public
American values in their purest form
The entrepreneur was seen as a rugged
individualist
Good examples of equality of opportunity
Entrepreneurs dislike submitting to higher
authority I am my own boss
The Entrepreneur as Business Hero
(17)

Many internet businesses were started in the

1990s (dot-coms)
They were loaned money based on their
potential, not their performance and their
share price rose many people became rich
Eventually, the stock market crashed and
many dot-coms went bust
The Entrepreneur as Business Hero
(18-19)

Despite this, many Americans are still willing to start

their own company
of all new companies fail in the first few years
Over of Americans are employed in small
businesses
1/3 of Americans belong to the creative class
people who create, design, problem solve etc
increasing the role of creativity and innovation
The Corporate CEO (20-23)
CEO Chief Executive Officer
Have power and wealth but are not generally seen
as heroes
Managing someone elses business
CEOs are not very popular e.g. overpaid, self
serving
Many CEOs have abused the businesses they
managed, and their employees
The image has changed over time sometimes
positive, sometimes negative depending on the
political climate
American Business in the Global
Marketplace (24-25)

Untilthe 20th century, most American

business took place in America
Now, American business has become
globalized
The US is the largest market in the world (a
consumer society)
The US is also a producer but is finding it
hard to compete with cheap foreign labor
The Changing American Workforce (26-
27)

Traditionally, Americanbusiness was

dominated by white males
Recently, more women have entered the
workforce now 50%
Few women are in senior positions (10-15%)
although are equally qualified
Women generally receive less pay
The Changing American Workforce (28-
31)

Workers who want to succeed are under

pressure to put work first and family second
Women earn 78% of men's salary (on
average)
Minorities are also discriminated against
New immigrants are changing the American
workforce less discrimination in future